A telescope is being built to catch a glimpse of the Big Bang, but how can that be?

Question

Compared to the speed of light, supposed to be a constant, common matter flies at a comparative snail's pace. But these, and others, such as those analyzing the Hubble telescope's deep space pictures, are thinking they are peering closer and closer to the actual Big Bang that began the universe. If it happened some two-dozen or so billion years ago, how do they think they can get a glimpse of that far long past event?

See the news link concerning the Atacama Large Milimeter Array radio telescope being built in Chile. Project objective comments are made by Dr. John Richer at Cambridge, an ALMA sponsor.

Answer 1

It will not see the big bang itself but the products of it.

When a firework explodes you see the flash and the shape of the flash, all the pretty bits that fly off and the direction they go in.

If you missed the actual event but found a video of it but only from two seconds after the explosion for a second going forward you could plot the courses and shapes backwards to the start.

This is in effect what scientists are seeking to do.

Answer 2

They won't see the Big Bang itself. My guess is that they hope to detect the effects that it had.

The background radio noise common throughout the universe is one example. It's everywhere; it's universal; it has no point source. It is left over from the big bang. So I expect that they hope to find something similar to this.

Answer 3

I bet NASA is building it right? Government entities are notorious for spending money on nothing. What will happen is that they will spend LOTS of taxpayer's money to build this thing and then realize it doesn't work.

Answer 4

There was no big bang.